Hashim Warren was on MSNBC's Connected Coast to Coast today and he blogs about it at Hip Hop Blogs and at Media Chin-Check.  They were discussing violence in hip hop and my general impression is that he got bested by a producer from BET.  But he'll get better at this because it's just the beginning of a lot of things, including Hashim's rise to prominence in hip hop media.

Being what may be the first hip hop blogger on television is rather historic and would have sounded absurd not that long ago.  It makes one ponder the possibilities.  I mean, what's next?  A black man on the moon?

That said, his closing statement at Media Chin-Check is a bit disturbing.  After throwing out a what goes around comes around argument, which does have merit, he closes with a reference to the killing of Tupac Shakur (I assume):

"Last time it was on a Vagas [sic] strip. Now dudes are shooting outside the corporate office. It's only a matter of time before some exec gets shot or stabbed up, instead of a rapper and his friends. Hopefully."

Hopefully?  If he's saying that executives are responsible for violence in hip hop because they promote violent music, for which a good argument could be made, then why doesn't he just say it rather than putting out the idea that he wants to see executives attacked?  I understand that he's writing a blog and that such statements can be filed under "the kinds of things bloggers like to throw out," but it seems a peculiar statement from someone who is now claiming to be the editor of SOHH Blogs*.

Although SOHH Blogs seems to be flying under the radar at this point, eventually, if blogs mean anything, such statements will have serious repercussions because what goes around does come around.  And it will be interesting to see how SOHH management handles it, once they finally get around to actually making a public announcement that their blogs exist.  I mean, if you had a writer on your site on television, wouldn't you feature it on the homepage?

Update: Please check out my followup on SOHH Blogs based on an interview with SOHH cofounder Felicia Palmer.

[*dead link removed]

Although I remain enthused about the launch of PowerPlay, the new digital music blog from Billboard and PaidContent.org, I was disappointed by the contributor listed only as "Todd" who found  Chuck D’s support of filesharing to be "ironic" and topped it with the headline "artists soften on file-sharing prosecution."  Todd was responding to an article that discusses a recent filing by musicians in support of Grokster’s position in MGM vs. Grokster that such companies should not be held liable for illegal uses of technology.

Though I’m not following the case very closely, I’ve long been aware of Chuck D.’s support for filesharing including partnering with Napster for a song contest back in 2000 which received wide coverage at the time.  Chuck D. has always been a strong supporter of new forms of communication technology, including MP3s, and has consistently maintained that such technology is a good thing for musicians’ career development.

Of course, rap music is as divided as any genre over filesharing as shown at Senate hearings in the fall of 2003 in which LL Cool J and Chuck D. took opposing stances in their testimonies.  Between Todd and Brad, I really have to wonder if these people’s eyes just glaze over when they see a rap musician’s name in the news, cause I know they read this stuff.  Don’t they?